EP1991038A2 - Verfahren und Vorrichtung zur Aktivierung von Ofenatmosphäre - Google Patents

Verfahren und Vorrichtung zur Aktivierung von Ofenatmosphäre Download PDF

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Publication number
EP1991038A2
EP1991038A2 EP08155974A EP08155974A EP1991038A2 EP 1991038 A2 EP1991038 A2 EP 1991038A2 EP 08155974 A EP08155974 A EP 08155974A EP 08155974 A EP08155974 A EP 08155974A EP 1991038 A2 EP1991038 A2 EP 1991038A2
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EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
gas
chamber
electrode
reactor
atmosphere
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Granted
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EP08155974A
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English (en)
French (fr)
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EP1991038A3 (de
EP1991038B1 (de
Inventor
Zbigniew Zurecki
Robert Ellsworth Knorr Jr.
John Lewis Green
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Air Products and Chemicals Inc
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Air Products and Chemicals Inc
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    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C23—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; CHEMICAL SURFACE TREATMENT; DIFFUSION TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL; INHIBITING CORROSION OF METALLIC MATERIAL OR INCRUSTATION IN GENERAL
    • C23C—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL
    • C23C16/00—Chemical coating by decomposition of gaseous compounds, without leaving reaction products of surface material in the coating, i.e. chemical vapour deposition [CVD] processes
    • C23C16/44—Chemical coating by decomposition of gaseous compounds, without leaving reaction products of surface material in the coating, i.e. chemical vapour deposition [CVD] processes characterised by the method of coating
    • C23C16/50—Chemical coating by decomposition of gaseous compounds, without leaving reaction products of surface material in the coating, i.e. chemical vapour deposition [CVD] processes characterised by the method of coating using electric discharges
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H05—ELECTRIC TECHNIQUES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • H05H—PLASMA TECHNIQUE; PRODUCTION OF ACCELERATED ELECTRICALLY-CHARGED PARTICLES OR OF NEUTRONS; PRODUCTION OR ACCELERATION OF NEUTRAL MOLECULAR OR ATOMIC BEAMS
    • H05H1/00—Generating plasma; Handling plasma
    • H05H1/24—Generating plasma
    • H05H1/48—Generating plasma using an arc
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
    • H01J37/00—Discharge tubes with provision for introducing objects or material to be exposed to the discharge, e.g. for the purpose of examination or processing thereof
    • H01J37/32—Gas-filled discharge tubes
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C23—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; CHEMICAL SURFACE TREATMENT; DIFFUSION TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL; INHIBITING CORROSION OF METALLIC MATERIAL OR INCRUSTATION IN GENERAL
    • C23C—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL
    • C23C16/00—Chemical coating by decomposition of gaseous compounds, without leaving reaction products of surface material in the coating, i.e. chemical vapour deposition [CVD] processes

Definitions

  • the present invention concerns elevated temperature, thermal treatments of metallic or cermet materials and work parts in furnaces or reactors using reactive atmospheres.
  • the atmospheres and treatments in the scope of invention include carburizing, nitriding, carbonitriding, nitrocarburizing, boronizing, bright annealing or oxide reduction, reducing atmospheres for brazing, soldering and sintering, carbon potential atmospheres for neutral heat treating of phase transformation alloys, solutionizing, aging, spheroidizing, hardening, stress relieving, normalizing, inert annealing, and the like.
  • the components of said atmospheres may include nitrogen (N2), hydrogen (H2), hydrocarbon gases (HC) such as methane (CH4), acetylene (C2H2), ethylene (C2H4), propane (C3H8) and many heavier molecular weight hydrocarbons, ammonia (NH3), evaporated alcohols such as methanol (CH3OH or ethanol (C2H5OH), carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2), water vapor (H2O), and noble gases such as argon (Ar) and helium (He).
  • Additional components of the atmosphere may include reaction byproducts and gases evolving from the furnace load or walls and/or heating components as well as the gases leaking into the furnace from outside, e.g. air.
  • Atmosphere gases may be introduced into the furnace as blends, premixed up-stream of the furnace in the gas flow control system, or can mix inside the furnace chamber.
  • the other options for atmosphere gas supply may include streams produced by endothermic and exothermic generators, e.g. the endothermic blend of 20% CO, 40% H2 and 40% N2 (unless otherwise stated, all percentages identified in this application should be understood to be on a volume basis) made by reforming CH4 with air, dissociated NH3, or injection and evaporation of liquids, e.g. CH3OH.
  • the material or work surface loaded into the furnace may be covered with a thick film of oxide, rust, or water-based oily residues, and the reactivity of the original atmosphere may turn out to be insufficient for this film removal within the desired treatment time and temperature range.
  • furnace air leaks and the other O2-containing sources of contamination may require additions of reducing and, sometimes, carburizing gases to the atmosphere, even if the most desired atmosphere would be an inert environment to parts for specific thermal transformation processes, that is, one without reducing and/or carburizing gases.
  • Such in-situ gettering techniques are limited by many process considerations. For example, the amount of H2 added to N2 atmosphere for reflowing solders on printed circuit boards has to be kept below 5% for safety, i.e.
  • Vacuum furnaces are used for thermal treatments to avoid environmental air leakage and evaporate impurity condensates from materials or parts loaded.
  • all vacuum furnace systems are expensive from the capital and operating standpoint.
  • the use of vacuum furnace doesn't solve the problem of gas stability.
  • HCs hydrocarbons
  • CH4 lowest cost CH4
  • Ion plasma vacuum furnaces have been developed to cope with the problem of gas stability and the surface films initially covering loaded work parts, but the cost of those systems, issues with processing complex part geometries and the difficulty of controlling the temperature, limit the use of ion plasma systems.
  • Drissen at al. U.S. Patent No. 5,717,186 proposed additional measures for controlling the direct current flowing through a workpiece in an ionic, vacuum heat treatment furnace.
  • Law et al. U.S. Patent No. 5,059,757 devised a way of limiting sooting in the same type of furnace.
  • Orita U.S. Patent No. 5,605,580 used a multi-step heat treatment procedure to minimize a non-uniform edge-carburizing effect, much more acute in the vacuum plasma systems than in the conventional gas carburizing.
  • Georges U.S. Patent No. 5,989,363 ) demonstrated the need for radiation screens in post-discharge, vacuum plasma nitriding.
  • Giacobbe European Patent No. 0324294A1
  • He and Paganessi PCT Publication No. WO2005/009932A1
  • Czernichowski U.S. Patent No. 6,007,742
  • GlidArc Garnier-Arc
  • Figure 1 is schematic sectional view of a heat treating furnace including an activated gas injector in accordance with the present invention
  • Figure 2A is a front view of an alternate embodiment of an activated gas injector having an open outlet end
  • Figure 2B is a sectional view taken along line 2B-2B of Figure 2A ;
  • Figure 2C is a front view of another alternate embodiment of an activated gas injector, which is similar to the activated gas injector shown in Figure 2A , but includes multiple supply pipes;
  • Figure 3A is a sectional view of another alternate embodiment of an activated gas injector, which is similar to the activated gas injector shown in Figure 2A , but includes a more restricted outlet end;
  • Figure 3B is a sectional view of another alternate embodiment of an activated gas injector, which is similar to the activated gas injector shown in Figure 3A , but includes an expansion tube on the outlet end;
  • Figure 3C is a sectional view of another alternative embodiment of an activated gas injector which includes an inline supply pipe and slanted slots cut into the injector shell;
  • Figure 4 is a bar graph showing the effects of NH3 and CH4 atmosphere activation at different temperatures and using different activation methods, including thermal activation, DC-plasma and AC-spark;
  • Figure 5 is a graph showing the run-time concentrations of NH3 and H2 in activated furnace atmospheres, using thermal activation, DC-plasma and AC-spark;
  • Figure 6 is a bar graph showing the effects of O2-contaminated, C2H4 atmosphere activation using different activation methods, including thermal activation, DC-plasma and AC-spark;
  • Figure 7 is a graph showing the micro-hardness of activated carburizing tests of AISI-SAE 1010 steel parts using DC-plasma (with either Ar or N2 as the primary component of the injected gas) and thermal treatment (with N2 as the primary component of the injected gas); and
  • Figure 8 is a summary of activated carburizing tests using DC-plasma.
  • the invention comprises an activated gas injector for use with a controlled atmosphere reactor having a reactor chamber.
  • the activated gas injector includes a shell that defines an activation chamber having an outlet, a first gas inlet which is adapted to be connected to a supply of a first gas and to introduce the first gas into the activation chamber, a first electrode that extends into the activation chamber and terminates within the activation chamber, a power supply connected to the first electrode which, when energized, provides an average voltage output at least 1 kV and an average current output of less than 10 A, and a second electrode that is exposed to the activation chamber and provides a ground potential with respect to the first electrode.
  • the first and second electrodes are positioned so that electrical discharges occur between the first electrode and the second electrode when the power supply is energized, the area in which the electrical discharges occur defining an electrical discharge zone.
  • the activation chamber, the first electrode, the second electrode, and the first gas inlet are configured so that the first gas is drawn through the electrical discharge zone before exiting the activation chamber through the outlet.
  • the invention comprises, a controlled-atmosphere reactor system including a reactor chamber adapted to accommodate a workload to be treated, the reactor chamber having an exhaust, at least one heat source being collectively capable of elevating the reactor chamber to a temperature of at least 90 degrees C, and at least one gas injector.
  • Each of the gas injectors include a shell defining an activation chamber having an outlet that is in flow communication with the reactor chamber, a first gas inlet which is adapted to be connected to a supply of a first gas and is positioned to introduce the first gas into the activation chamber, a first electrode that extends into the activation chamber and terminates within the activation chamber, a power supply connected to the first electrode which, when energized, provides an average voltage output at least 1 kV and an average current output of less than 10 A, and a second electrode that is exposed to the activation chamber and provides a ground potential with respect to the first electrode.
  • the first and second electrodes are positioned so that electrical discharges occur between the first electrode and the second electrode when the power supply is energized, the area in which the electrical discharges occur defining an electrical discharge zone.
  • the activation chamber, the first electrode, the second electrode, and the first gas inlet are configured so that the first gas is drawn through the electrical discharge zone before exiting the activation chamber through the outlet.
  • the invention comprises a method for activating an atmosphere contained by a reactor chamber of a controlled-atmosphere reactor.
  • a first gas is supplied into an activation chamber from an elevated pressure source. Electrical discharges are generated between a first electrode located within the activation chamber and a second electrode having a ground potential with respect to the first electrode by connecting the first electrode to a power supply that provides an average output voltage of at least 1kV and an average output current that is less than 10 A.
  • the first gas is exposed to the electrical discharges and is disharged into the reactor chamber through an outlet formed in the activation chamber.
  • a pressure of no less than one millibar is maintained in the reactor chamber while the first gas is being discharged into the controlled-atmosphere reactor chamber.
  • a temperature of at least 90 degrees is maintained in the reactor chamber while the first gas is being discharged into the reactor chamber.
  • the invention comprises an electric discharge apparatus and a method of using the apparatus in a conventional furnace for heat, thermochemical, or surface treating of metals or metal-containing components.
  • the conventional furnace may be any type of a controlled atmosphere heat treating furnace: a batch-type, box or bell furnace, or a continuous belt, pusher or roller hearth furnace, operating at an approximately atmospheric pressure, or a so-called vacuum furnace, operating at a reduced pressure which is not lower than 1 millibar at the time of using the apparatus.
  • the conventional furnace requires its own heating elements and temperature control system.
  • the apparatus and method can be applied to any type of atmosphere and furnace operation defined in the background of invention.
  • This embodiment comprises a heat treating furnace 100, having a furnace wall 101, which defines a furnace chamber 1, in which a workload 2 is positioned.
  • the furnace also includes a plurality of heaters 5a, 5b, 5c, an exhaust 6 and, in accordance with the present invention, an activated gas injector 20.
  • the activated gas injector 20 comprises an injector shell 7 which extends into the furnace chamber 1 and terminates at an outlet 103.
  • the injector shell 7 is a generally cylindrical pipe.
  • a gas supply pipe 21 extends into the injector shell 7 and terminates inside the injector shell 7 before reaching the outlet 103.
  • the activated gas injector 20 also includes electrodes 8, 104 which extend into the injector shell 7 and terminate inside the outlet 103, and are preferably positioned between the outlet end of the supply pipe 21 and the outlet 103. Electrode 104, injector shell 7, supply pipe 21 and furnace wall 101 are all preferably grounded (which results in a ground potential relative to the electrode 8 when electrode 8 is energized, in the manner described herein).
  • Electrode 8 is connected to a high-voltage power supply 110 and is insulated from electrode 104, injector shell 7, supply pipe 21 and furnace wall 101 with an insulator 38.
  • the insulator 38 preferably is made of a ceramic oxide material, without organic additives, can be used for the electric insulation. Examples include alumina, silicates, mica, magnesia, or glass.
  • any type of a high-voltage, low-current power supply 710 could be used.
  • alternating current (AC) power supply having an input voltage of 110V to 230V, an average output voltage in the range of 1 kV to 50 kV (both at a frequency of approximately 50Hz to 60Hz) could be used.
  • DC direct current
  • a DC power supply having an input voltage of 12V to 230V, an average output voltage in the range of 1 kV to 50 kV could be used.
  • a DC power supply it preferably includes a half-wave or full-wave rectifier. In both cases, it is preferable that the average operating current for the power supply 110 be no more than 10 A and, more preferably, no more than 5 A.
  • the present invention can be implemented using a simple, low-cost AC or DC power supply.
  • a high-frequency, high-voltage power supply also called a "pulse” or "pulsed” power suppy) is not required.
  • Use of a high-voltage, low-current power supply to activate the process gas enables the activated gas injector 20 to operate at high reactor chamber temperatures without the use of a fluid-based (e.g., water) cooling system and provides for a longer service life than if a high-current power supply was used.
  • Use of low current will reduce the likelihood of damaging or melting electrode surfaces.
  • Use of high-voltage assures large, voluminous discharges within the process gas stream, even at a low current.
  • the injector shell 7 protrudes into the furnace chamber 1 so that the electrodes 8, 104 can absorb heat from the furnace chamber 1.
  • the injector shell 7 could be mounted so that the outlet 103 is flush with the furnace wall 101.
  • the injector shell 7 comprises an internal volume (referred to herein as an activation chamber) in which a process gas is activated before being discharged into the furnace chamber 1.
  • the electrodes 104,108 be positioned so that, when the when the power supply is energized, an electrical field having a strength of between 1 kV/cm and 100 kV/cm is formed between the electrodes 104,108.
  • a portion of the expanded stream 10 recirculates inside the furnace chamber 1 and may come in contact with the surface 12 of the work load 2 before exiting furnace chamber 1 via exhaust 6, along with the other gases present in the furnace chamber 1.
  • the electric discharge activated stream 9 expands into the furnace chamber 1, it may aspirate and entrain a portion of the volume of gas atmosphere already present in the chamber. This aspiration entrainment effect, illustrated in Figure 1 by arrows 11a, 11b, results in the chemical interaction between the electric discharge activated stream 9 and the rest of the furnace atmosphere.
  • the introduction of the electric discharge-activated stream 9 has two effects on the furnace atmosphere: (1) the electric discharge-activated stream 9 is added to the furnace atmosphere and (2) a secondary interaction occurs between the electric discharge-activated stream 9 and the existing gases in the furnace atmosphere.
  • the secondary interaction requires gas to be present inside the furnace chamber 1 prior to the introduction of the electric discharge-activated stream 9. Therefore, the secondary interaction will not take place in a "hard-vacuum" furnace chamber, having a pressure below 1 millibar (mbar) during the atmosphere activation process.
  • the present invention does not rely on a direct impingement of activated gas species at the surface 12 of the work load 2 and it does not require the work load 2 to be part of the circuit that results in the electrical discharge (i.e., no electrical charge is applied to the work load 2).
  • the present invention provides an improved alternative to plasma ion-nitriding and ion-carburizing fumaces, which operate at reduced pressures and require an electrical connection to all loaded workpieces.
  • the activated gas injector 20 (more specifically, the activation chamber) is adapted to operate at substantially the same temperature as the operating temperature of the furnace chamber 1.
  • the activated gas injector 20 may operate at a slightly lower temperature than the operating temperature of the furnace chamber 1 if the process gas is supplied at a lower temperature than the operating temperature of the furnace chamber 1 and/or if a portion of the activation chamber is located outside of the furnace chamber 1.
  • the activated gas injector of the present invention could be incorporated into many alternative types of controlled-atmosphere reactor systems and reactor chamber configurations.
  • continuous reactor chamber applications i.e., a reactor chamber having a loading end and an unloading end
  • CH4 gas is injected into the furnace chamber across an electric discharge and/or plasma (hereinafter referred to as "electrical activation")
  • electrical activation a portion of the gas stream would be converted into ions, atoms, radicals, and excited molecules, such as H, H*, H + , H 2 *:, H 3 *, C 2 , CH, CH 2 , CH 3 , CH 3 + , etc.
  • Clustering reactions in the discharge may also produce, in-situ, different types of hydrocarbons such as C 2 -based reactive acetylene, C2H2, or ethylene, C2H4.
  • C2H2 reactive acetylene
  • the present invention can be used to inject an atmosphere-modifying gas and/or an atmosphere-forming gas into the furnace.
  • An atmosphere-modifying gas is one in which at least a fraction of the gas stream is converted into ions, atoms, radicals, and excited molecules, such as H, H*, H + , H 2 *, H 3 *, C 2 , CH, CH 2 , CH 3 , CH 3 + , etc.
  • An atmosphere-forming gas is one in which the composition of the feed gas changes, that is, new molecules are formed due to the energy provided by the injector.
  • FIG. 2A through 3C & 2B Five additional embodiments of the present invention are shown in Figures 2A through 3C & 2B .
  • features shown in the drawings that correspond to features shown in Figure 1 are designated by reference numerals that are increased by a factor of 100.
  • the activated gas injector 20 is designated by reference numerals 120 and 220 in the second and third embodiments, respectively.
  • Some of the corresponding features are numbered in Figures 2A through 3C to provide context but are not specifically referred to in the description of the additional embodiments.
  • FIGS 2A & 2B show a second embodiment of an activated gas injector 120 which includes a cylindrical cup 113 having an open end 122, a supply pipe 121 and an electrode 108.
  • the internal volume defined by the cup 113 and the open end 122 is the activation chamber for this embodiment.
  • the electrode 108 is preferably connected to a high-voltage, low-current power supply (not shown).
  • the electrode 108 extends into the cup 113 along its central axis, terminates inside the cup 113 (i.e., does not extend past the open end 122 of the cup 113) and is insulated from the cup 113, preferably by a ceramic, high-temperature-resistant insulator 138.
  • the cup 113 is preferably made from a conductive metal and is grounded by a ground lead 115.
  • a process gas stream 114 is injected into the cup 113 from an external source via an inlet 140 from a gas supply pipe 121.
  • the gas supply pipe 121 and the inlet 140 is preferably positioned tangent to the perimeter of the cup 113.
  • the process gas swirls inside the cup 113, is exposed to electric discharges 119, and exits the cup 113 along the lines shown by arrows 109a, 109b. Due to the nature of the vortex flow formed inside the open-ended and short cup 113, a low-pressure region is formed in the central zone of the cup 113, which draws in and aspirates furnace atmospheric gases (shown by arrow 117).
  • the aspirated stream 117 mixes with the swirling process gas stream 114 and exits along the lines 118a, 118b.
  • electric discharges 119 extend between the electrode 108 and the cup 113 during the described vortex mixing process, which subjects both the process gas stream 114 and the aspirated (furnace atmosphere) stream 117 to electric discharge-activated reactions.
  • the discharges 119 are formed by discrete arcs and/or streamers running between the tip of the hot electrode 108 and the internal diameter of the cup 113. The formation of a more uniform plasma glow around these arcs is also noted if the flowrate of the stream 14 is not excessive. It is preferable that the flow rate of the process gas be within a range that results in a relatively uniform plasma glow around the electric discharges 119, which can be disrupted by an excessive process gas flow rate.
  • the electric discharges 119 also tend to rotate around the inside of the cup 113 due to the vortex flow that is forced by the tangentially injected process gas stream 114. Rotation of the electric discharges 119 assures that there is no single-point arc-roots attachment on the surface of the cup 113, which reduces the possibility of thermal damage to the inner surface of the cup 113.
  • FIG 2C shows a third embodiment of the activated gas injector shown in Figures 2A & 2B .
  • the activated gas injector 220 includes multiple tangential injection ports 221a, 221 b, 221c, 221d for the process gas, which may provide assuring a more uniform swirling inside the cup 213.
  • FIGS 3A, 3B and 3C show three additional embodiments of the activated gas injector.
  • the activated gas injector 320 depicted in Figure 3A is identical to activated gas injector 120 (shown in Figures 2A & 2B ), except that the open end 322 of the injector cup 313 is partially-covered by a lid 330 having an axial hole 331 formed therein.
  • the activated gas injector 320 reduces aspiration of furnace atmosphere gas into the injector cup 313 and increases the velocity of the electric discharge activated stream 309 as it exits the injector cup 313.
  • increased aspiration and entrainment of the furnace gases with the electric discharge-activated stream 309 occur outside the cup.
  • the aspirated furnace atmosphere 311a, 311b rapidly mixes with the electric discharge activated stream 309 to form new reacting streams 31 0a, 310b external to the injector cup 313.
  • the activated gas injector 420 injector depicted in Figure 3B differs from the activated gas injector 320, shown in Figure 3A , in that it includes an expansion tube 432 extending from the axial hole 431.
  • the electric discharge-activated stream 409 moves faster along the axis of the expansion tube 432, which causes at least some of the electric discharges 419 to extend into the expansion tube 432.
  • the activation chamber includes the internal volume defined by both the cup 413 and the expansion tube 432.
  • the visible, light-emitting portion of the electric discharges 419 may be easily beyond the expansion tube 432 (i.e., into the furnace chamber) by using higher process gas flow rates.
  • the activated gas injector 520 shown in Figure 3C is similar to the activated gas injector 420, but includes an inline supply pipe 521 instead of the tangentially-positioned supply pipe 421.
  • a swirl plate 523 is provided inside the injection cup 513, just upstream from the tip of the hot electrode 508.
  • the swirl plate 523 is preferably made of a high-temperature dielectric ceramic and comprises a series of slanted or helical slots 534 formed thereon.
  • the process gas stream 514 is forced through the slots 534, which causes the process gas stream 514 to swirl around the injector axis and forms a vortex flow.
  • the injector shell and electrodes may be formed from any conductive, high-temperature corrosion resistant metals or alloys, such as stainless steel, Kovar, nickel alloys, tungsten, molybdenum, and their alloys, for example.
  • the insulation used with the hot electrodes may be formed from any suitable dielectric and thermo-chemically resistant oxide ceramic, such as alumina, mullite, aluminosilicates, ceramic glass, or modified zirconia, for example.
  • multiple activated gas injectors could be used in a furnace at the same, depending on furnace size, configuration, and heat treatment or thermochemical surface treatment process requirements.
  • one or more activated gas injectors could be installed near the ends of the furnace, in order to prevent the penetration of the furnace interior with un reacted ambient air.
  • Such a system would provide improved control and uniformity of the furnace atmosphere, as well as enhanced safety due to the elimination of potentially explosive gas blend pockets.
  • a low-current, high-voltage power source extends the life of injector electrodes.
  • the low current arcs do not tend to melt electrode surfaces, and high voltage arcs assure large, voluminous discharges within the gas stream (even at low current levels).
  • a "low-current, high-voltage" power source should be understood to be a power source having an average current output of less than 10 Amp and an average voltage output of at least 1.0 kV.
  • the invented unit differs from the prior art by aspirating hot furnace atmosphere gases into its core (e.g., the cup 113) through the electric discharge, mixing the aspirated hot furnace atmosphere gases with the fresh process gas stream, and exhausting the resultant mixture, once again through the electric discharge, all to maximize the gas-plasma interactions.
  • core e.g., the cup 113
  • chemically reactive, high-voltage/low-current/high-frequency or pulsed electric discharges known in the art and called, collectively nonequilibrium or cold plasmas.
  • the shortest distance between the tip of the hot and the ground electrodes in the AC injector was set for 0.14 inches (0,355 cm) which resulted in a maximum electric field strength E, of 28 kV/cm.
  • the shortest distance between the tip of the hot electrode (in this case the cathode) and the ground electrode (in this case the anode), in the DC injector was set for 0.218 inches (0.55 cm) which resulted in a maximum electric field strength E, of 4.5 kV/cm during steady state operation and increasing to 18 kV/cm in upset mode when the discharge produced was weak or lost.
  • the molar energy added to the gas stream processed was inversely proportional to the stream flowrate: 23.9 eV for the flowrate of 1 scfh (0.028 m 3 /hr), 2.39 eV for the flowrate of 10 scfh (0.28 m 3 /hr), 0.239 eV for the flowrate of 100 scfh (2.8 m 3 /hr), and 0.12 eV for the flowrate of 200 scfh (5.7 m 3 /hr).
  • the higher process gas flow rates were expected to produce an equal number of activated gas species as the lower flow rates, but at a reduced volumetric concentration and with the preference for forming lower activation-energy products.
  • a thermocouple placed in front of injector exit, indicated that the average temperature of the activated stream about 0.25 inches (6.3 mm) downstream did not exceed 200°F (93°C), with only small variations due to the process gas stream flow rate used.
  • Figure 4 shows the effects of atmosphere activation according to the invention by comparing the composition of the furnace gases using conventional, "thermal” dissociation of the process gas stream with furnace gas composition using the process gas activation methods of the present invention: DO-plasma, or "plasma”, and AC-spark, or “spark.”
  • the evaluation involved injecting various N2-based blends of reactive gases, NH3 and CH4, into a furnace being kept at four different temperatures: 600°C (1110°F), 800°C (1470°F), 850°C (1560°F), and 1000°C (1830°F).
  • the first blend tested at 600°C (1110°F) comprised N2 and 2.5% NH3 as measured at the inlet to the furnace or to the electric discharge injector.
  • the second blend was N2 and 3.4% CH4.
  • the third blend consisted of N2 and 2.2% CH4.
  • the first blend tested at 800°C (1470°F) consisted of N2 and 3.4% CH4, and the second consisted of N2 and 2.2% CH4.
  • the blend tested at 850°C (1560°F) consisted of N2 and 2.4% CH4.
  • the first blend tested at 1000°C (1830°F) consisted of N2 and 3.41% CH4 and the second consisted of N2 and 2.2% CH4. All tests were run in a ceramic lined furnace in order to avoid catalytic dissociation of the gases on furnace walls.
  • the evaluation was based on comparing the average molar ratio of H2/HC and H2/NH3 in the furnace exhaust for the thermal and the activated conditions, with the same process gas composition. Higher ratios (shown on the y-axis) indicate higher dissociation and reactions of the gas stream in the furnace atmosphere while lower ratios show the absence of such reactions and inert, undesired behavior.
  • Figure 5 plots a run-time concentration of NH3 and H2 in the furnace atmosphere, sampled from the furnace exhaust, for experiments at 525°C (975°F) involving injection of the process gas stream comprising 12% NH3 in N2.
  • the first test (labeled “no activation” in Figure 5 ), where no electric discharge activation was used, shows the lowest drop in the NH3 concentration and the lowest concentration of H2 released from the decomposed NH3.
  • the second test (labeled "AC spark” in Figure 5 ), where AC spark injection was used, produced the strongest drop in the original NH3 concentration (from 12% to 8.8%) and the highest H2 gain (as high as 4%).
  • the third test (labeled "DC plasma” in Figure 5 ), in which DC plasma injection was used, produced NH3 and H2 concentrations falling between the concentrations for the first and second runs.
  • Figure 6 shows the effects of atmosphere activation using the same methodology as shown in Figure 4 , with two primary differences: (1) the HC diluted in N2 is C2H4 rather than CH4, and (2) a source of O2-contamination is added to the furnace in the form of heavily oxidized steel parts loaded therein. Since the reduction of iron oxides as well as carburizing of metallic iron produces CO2, and the desired but kinetically slow reaction of HC with this CO2 produces CO and H2, the evaluation of the atmosphere activation was based on the molar ratio of H2/HC as well as that of (H2+CO)/HC. As shown in Figure 6 , the DC-plasma injection system was the most effective at activating desired reactions inside the furnace, the AC-spark injection system was slightly less effective, and the conventional thermal activation system (i.e., no electric discharge activation) was the least effective.
  • Figure 7 shows results of comparative case carburizing tests performed on AISI-SAE 1010 steel parts (having a 0.1% initial carbon level, by weight) using the conventional thermal activation method and the DC-plasma activation method of the present invention.
  • the carburizing was run at 850°C (1560°F) for 3 hours using 2.5% CH4 diluted in N2 during the thermal and the first DC-plasma run, and 2.5% CH4 diluted in argon (Ar) in the second DC-plasma run. After the carburizing step, all samples were cooled to room temperature with the furnace without additional quenching and tempering operations.
  • Figure 8 shows the results of the N2 plasma activated, carburizing test presented in Figure 7 , as well as additional carburizing tests run under the same conditions using the steel parts with an increased initial carbon level: 0.1% (by weight) for the AISI-SAE steel grade 1010 parts, 0.5% (by weight) for the AISI-SAE 1050 parts and 0.75% (by weight) for the AISI-SAE 1075 parts.
  • temperature is shown on the Y-axis (degrees C on the left and degrees F on the right) and carbon content (% by weight) is shown on the X-axis.
  • the results of the three tests are represented by the arrowed lines superimposed on the standard Fe-C binary phase diagram. The results show that surface carbon levels, marked in the Figure 8 as "case” were increased to 0.9% (by weight) in all three tests regardless of the starting carbon content, thus, determining the carburizing potential of the DC discharge-activated N2 - 2.5% CH4 atmosphere.
  • Additional tests were run with the purpose of accelerated bright annealing of surface oxidized steel parts using pure H2 atmospheres.
  • Three types of hot mill-scaled test coupons were used: AISI-SAE 1010 carbon steel, A2 tool steel, and 304 austenitic stainless steel.
  • the annealing tests were run at 1000°C (1830°F) for 2 hours using the H2 process stream flowrate of 90 scfh (2.55 m 3 /hr).
  • One set of the three coupons was run under the conventional, thermal H2 atmosphere, while the other was run under the AC-spark injected and activated H2 atmosphere. The surface of the carbon steel was completely reduced and bright at the end of both tests.
  • the surface of the tool steel was reduced and bright only for the AC-spark activated test and not for the conventional, thermal test.
  • the surface of the stainless steel was not bright after any of the tests but the AC-spark test replaced the initial oxide film with a brownish film suggesting the presence of metal nitrides.
  • Table 1 lists some characteristics of some embodiments of the invention.

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KR101258010B1 (ko) 2013-04-24
US20080283153A1 (en) 2008-11-20
MY151853A (en) 2014-07-14
KR101151190B1 (ko) 2012-06-11
BRPI0803083A8 (pt) 2018-04-24
EP1991038A3 (de) 2010-09-01
SG148109A1 (en) 2008-12-31
MX2008006049A (es) 2009-03-03
US8268094B2 (en) 2012-09-18
KR20110058763A (ko) 2011-06-01
CA2631064C (en) 2011-09-27
BRPI0803083A2 (pt) 2011-08-16
EP1991038B1 (de) 2014-10-01
PL1991038T3 (pl) 2015-03-31
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RU2008118730A (ru) 2009-11-20
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